Kobach may seek Secretary of State office / LJWorld.com

Lawrence and Douglas county

December 8, 2008, 10:03 a.m. Updated December 8, 2008, 11:24 p.m.

Topeka — Kansas Republican Party Chairman Kris Kobach said Monday he would probably run in 2010 for Secretary of State, the state’s chief election official.

Kobach, a law professor at University of Missouri-Kansas City, said he was concerned about the potential for voter fraud and that if he were elected secretary of state, he would push for legislation that would require Kansans show identification to vote.

“That would be something that I would be constantly urging the Legislature to put in place,” he said.

He said Gov. Kathleen Sebelius’ veto of a bill earlier this year that would have required Kansas voters to show photo identification was “one of her biggest mistakes.” In vetoing the bill, Sebelius, a Democrat, said there were no instances of voter fraud in Kansas, making the measure unnecessary and adding a burden to some citizens in exercising their right to vote.

The current secretary of state, Ron Thornburgh, also a Republican, is in his fourth term, and has said he intends to run for the GOP nomination for governor in 2010.

In announcing his intentions, Kobach said he will not seek re-election as chairman of the state Republican Party. He also said he hasn’t ruled out a race for attorney general.

Kobach, elected party chairman in 2007, said he accomplished his goals for the GOP in the recent election in which Republican Lynn Jenkins defeated U.S. Rep. Nancy Boyda, D-Topeka, and Kansas’ other congressional Republicans won by landslides.

“The Kansas Republican Party is back,” he said.

Kobach ran for the 3rd Congressional District seat in 2004 but was defeated by U.S. Rep. Dennis Moore, D-Lenexa.

Kobach is a former White House fellow and had advised former U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft on immigration issues.

Kobach’s successor as party chairman will be elected by the 200-member Republican State Committee on Jan. 30. Christian Morgan, state GOP executive director, said one person who has decided to run is Amanda Adkins, a GOP activist from Overland Park who managed U.S. Sen. Sam Brownback’s 2004 re-election campaign.

In addition to service as chairman, Kobach represented parents and students in an unsuccessful lawsuit challenging a 2004 Kansas law giving the children of some illegal immigrants the lower in-state tuition rates.

— Statehouse reporter Scott Rothschild can be reached at (785) 354-4222 or (785) 423-0668.

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jayhawklawrence (anonymous) says…

Or as the saying goes, "Time to get out of Dodge...".
December 8, 2008 at 10:19 a.m.
Dani (anonymous) says…

$100 says he's running for Attorney General.
December 8, 2008 at 10:20 a.m.
janeyb (anonymous) says…

Topeka CJ hinted he would run for Brownback's senate seat.
December 8, 2008 at 10:31 a.m.
Uhlrick_Hetfield_III (anonymous) says…

“The Kansas Republican Party is back,”Back where?
December 8, 2008 at 10:54 a.m.
just_another_bozo_on_this_bus (anonymous) says…

"Topeka CJ hinted he would run for Brownback's senate seat."If so, and he wins the Republican nomination, nothing could be better for Sebelius if she runs on the Democratic side.
December 8, 2008 at 11:16 a.m.
BigDog (anonymous) says…

Yeah like Topeka Capital Journal knows what they are talking about especially if they are basing it upon this....."Kobach said he would likely run for elective office in two years. It has been suggested that he could seek the U.S. Senate seat to be vacated by Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan."Yeah like the attorney general, US House, and other positions aren't upon for election in two years.I mean already planning for that US Senate race on the Republican side is Jerry Moran and Todd Tiahrt. I don't think he has a shot against either of those in a primary let alone winning a general election. Moran already has $2 million in bank and Tiahrt $1 million.More likely he is looking at US House race or attorney general.
December 8, 2008 at 12:05 p.m.
Keith (anonymous) says…

"Uhlrick_Hetfield_III (Anonymous) says…“The Kansas Republican Party is back,”Back where?"50 to 100 years back.
December 8, 2008 at 12:27 p.m.
just_another_bozo_on_this_bus (anonymous) says…

He'd follow in the tradition of other partisan hacks who have become Republican Secretaries of State, such as Katherine Harris of Florida and Kenneth Blackwell of Ohio. Given that there is absolutely no evidence of significant voter fraud anywhere in recent times, and overwhelming evidence that it would be impossible to implement in any organized, and therefore meaningful, way, we should all be very concerned about what his true intentions are.
December 9, 2008 at 7:10 a.m.
KU_cynic (anonymous) says…

As an independent-minded Republican, let me say that I will never vote for Kobach for any office. His entire public career appears to be based on mean-spirited targeting of the most vulnerable people among us.
December 9, 2008 at 7:55 a.m.
CLARKKENT (anonymous) says…

oh boy, the two k's are back.kobach and kline--neither can be or should ever be elected.we have enough problems without those two!!
December 9, 2008 at 10:05 a.m.